Government injects W100b into Eximbank

The government said Monday that it has injected 100 billion won ($89.6 million) into the Export-Import Bank of Korea to help the policy lender secure better trade financing capacity for exporters.The capital increase was made in the form of stock contribution as the government used about 9.55 million shares in the state-run Korea Express Corp., according to the Finance Ministry.The move is aimed at providing more financing capacity for the bank so that it can help strong but liquidity-strapped e

Sept. 17, 2012

Retail investors report dismal investment return

Korean retail investors suffered a massive loss in their stock investment this year lagging behind robust profits boasted by institutional and foreign investors due to information disparity, data showed Monday.Individual investors reported a net loss of 18.15 percent for their top 10 mostly purchased shares through Sept. 14 this year, according to the data compiled by the main bourse operator Korea Exchange.On the other hand, foreign investors gained 4.6 percent from their top 10 most buying sha

Sept. 17, 2012

Shares end 0.26 pct lower on profit-taking

South Korean stocks fell 0.26 percent on Monday as investors took profits from recent gains powered by the U.S. bond-buying program, analysts said. The local currency rose against the U.S. dollar.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index declined 5.23 points to 2,002.35, the first loss in four sessions.Trading volume was heavy at 871.3 billion shares worth 6.5 trillion won ($5.83 billion). But gainers outnumbered losers 458 to 359.“Investors took a breather after the previous session‘s ral

Sept. 17, 2012

FSS promotes Seoul as financial hub in H.K.

Financial Hub Korea, a unit of the Financial Supervisory Service, jointly hosted the 2012 Financial Hub Seoul IR with the Seoul Metropolitan Government in Hong Kong last week. Over 200 executives from about 70 global finance institutions attended the event aimed at promoting Seoul’s bid to attract foreign financial companies and become a leading financial hub, officials said.Participants included John McCormick, chairman of Royal Bank of Scotland Group, Asia Pacific; Wong David See Hong, deputy

Sept. 17, 2012

KDI cuts Korea’s growth estimate to 2.5 percent

South Korea’s economy is expected to grow 2.5 percent this year, a state-run think tank said Monday, slashing its growth outlook sharply on slowing exports growth affected by heightened global uncertainty.The latest growth projection is far lower than the 3.6 percent expansion that the Korea Development Institute forecast in May. It is also much lower than the government’s 3.3 percent growth estimate for this year. “We expect that the economic growth rate will fall to 2.5 percent this year as bo

Sept. 17, 2012

Seoul shares open higher on U.S. gains

South Korean stocks opened higher on Monday as investor sentiment got a boost from the U.S. Fed's latest stimulus measure, analysts said. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) climbed0.85 points, or 0.04 percent, to 2008.43 in the first 15 minutes of trading.Tech blue chips drove up the shares, with LG Electronics gaining 1.59 percent and SK hynix, the world No. 2 memory chipmake

Sept. 17, 2012

Stocks expected to continue upward move this week

South Korean stocks are expected to keep their upward momentum this week on improved investor sentiment following recently-unveiled stimulus measures by the U.S. Federal Reserve, analysts said Saturday.The country’s key stock index, the KOSPI, jumped 4.04 percent, or 78 points, last week to close at a five-month high of 2,007.58 on Friday.On Friday alone, the index rallied 2.92 percent as investors cheered the Fed’s decision to purchase mortgage bonds as long as it needs and keep interest rates

Sept. 16, 2012

KOSPI hits 5-month high as Fed acts

South Korea’s benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index passed the 2,000-point mark on Friday, hitting a five-month high upon the U.S. Federal Reserve’s monetary stimulus action and S&P’s upgrades of the country’s credit ratings.Seoul stocks closed at 2,007.58 points, a jump of 2.92 percent from the previous day. The U.S. Federal Reserve announced on Friday it would implement a third round of quantitative easing by purchasing additional agency mortgage-backed securities at a pace of $40 billio

Sept. 14, 2012

Shares end little changed ahead of U.S. announcement

South Korean stocks finished little changed on Thursday as investors turned cautious before the U.S. central bank’s decision on another round of monetary stimulus to boost the economy, analysts said. The local currency declined against the U.S. dollar.Swinging between gains and losses, the benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index gained 0.66 points, or 0.03 percent, to 1,950.69. Trading volume was heavy at 956.4 million shares worth 5.97 trillion won ($5.29 billion), with gainers slightly out

Sept. 13, 2012

Vogo Fund to acquire Burger King unit from SRS Korea for $88m

South Korean private equity fund Vogo Fund will take over the local chain of Burger King from franchise restaurant operator SRS Korea Co. for about 100 billion won ($88.7 million) this year, industry sources said Thursday. According to the sources, the local fund has completed negotiations to buy the chain of global fast food restaurant Burger King in South Korea with Doosan Group that has SRS Korea under its wing and will sign a preliminary deal for the acquisition some time soon. The deal is e

Sept. 13, 2012

FSS to probe firms that have frequent customer complaints

Financial companies which drew a relatively high number of complaints from customers will be subject to full-fledged investigations by regulators.The Financial Supervisory Service said Thursday that it has decided to conduct a large-scale probe into the overall sector including banks, brokerages, credit card firms, insurance firms and savings banks.This will mark the first time that the FSS will probe the overall financial sector simultaneously in terms of customer complaints over each company,

Sept. 13, 2012

Shares close 1.56 percent up on U.S. optimism

Korean stocks jumped 1.56 percent Wednesday as investors scooped up local shares on hopes for U.S. stimulus measures and eased eurozone woes, analysts said. The local currency climbed against the U.S. dollar.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index gained 30.03 points to 1,950.03, snapping a two-session losing streak.Trading volume was heavy at 693.3 million shares worth 5.17 trillion won ($4.59 billion), with gainers far outstripping losers 541 to 278.“Led by optimism about a possible U.

Sept. 12, 2012

More rich kids own stocks

Stocks owned by minors reached nearly 4 trillion won ($3.6 billion) as of last year, Korea Exchange and the National Tax Service reported on Wednesday. The total amount increased by fourfold over the previous year’s 1.12 trillion won. Among shareholders in South Korea, about 1.8 percent, or over 92,000, were minors under 19 years of age, according to the institutions. The under-19 shareholders owned on average 42.95 million won each. The number of minor shareholders has been on a steady rise sin

Sept. 12, 2012

KB launches panel to assess social contributions

KB Kookmin Bank on Tuesday launched a committee to assess and get advice on the bank’s various social contribution activities.The KB Social Contribution Committee is comprised of five outside experts such as professors and senior staff of the Korea YMCA and a network of advocacy groups for disabled people, as well as two KB executives.“We ask you to empathize with KB Kookmin’s efforts to give hope to the socially vulnerable as well as our customers and the entire Korean people,” the bank’s chief

Sept. 11, 2012

Metlife, AIA in planners war

Despite diversifying sales channels through the Internet and home shopping networks, insurance companies in Korea still rely heavily on salespeople, or life planners. Fierce competition to scout life planners with outstanding sales records has driven Metlife Korea to file a suit against AIA Life Insurance.The local arm of the U.S. insurer recently filed a 15 billion won damages suit against AIA Life with the Seoul Central District Court for obstructing its sales by scouting a number of high-perf

Sept. 11, 2012

Korean watchdog to promote Seoul as financial hub

HONG KONG (Yonhap News) ― Korea’s financial regulator said Tuesday it will hold an investor relations session in Hong Kong this week in a bid to promote Seoul as a financial hub and attract foreign financial companies to the capital.The 2012 Financial Hub Seoul Conference in Hong Kong, to be hosted jointly with the Seoul Metropolitan Government on Wednesday, will highlight South Korea’s efforts to become a leading financial center, the Financial Supervisory Service said.Participants will also be

Sept. 11, 2012

Government plans W5.9tr stimulus measures

The government announced on Monday a stimulus package worth 5.9 trillion won ($5.23 billion) to boost lackluster domestic consumption and exports by the protracted eurozone debt crisis and a slowdown in China. The Finance Ministry said it would allocate 4.6 trillion won for this year and 1.3 trillion won for next year in its fiscal support measures.The economic support will be made mainly in the form of tax cuts to recharge sagging domestic demand, ministry officials said.The package was arrange

Sept. 10, 2012